*** RELEASE DAY REVIEW *** DAMAGED GODS by K.C. Cross

 

DAMAGED GODS

Not your ordinary, everyday beast.

If you’ve gotta be stuck in a curse with monsters—they might as well be sexy monsters.

When I answered an ad for a caretaker at Saint Mark’s Sanctuary, I thought I’d be dusting chandeliers and polishing floors.

 I didn’t expect to be tricked into a curse, going in debt to a monster, and being forced to take a self-paced “Let’s Learn Magic” course so I can fix a two-thousand-year-old problem.

And that monster?

Not your ordinary, everyday beast.

He has hooves, and horns, and fur on his legs.

But ya know where he doesn’t have fur?

Yeah. There.

Which is fine.

Except he doesn’t wear pants.

Nothing at Saint Mark’s is exactly what it seems.

The entire inside is magic, the hallways upstairs are nothing but parties from the past, and

 the super-hot guy who lives in the dungeon?

Yeah.

Not human.

My name is Pie and all I want is to be a normal girl with an average life.

I refuse to get stuck in this curse.

I refuse to learn magic to break it.

And there is no way in hell I will fall in love with a monster.

Famous.

Last.

Words.

AUDIOBOOK WILL RELEASE on July 27. Jason Clarke and Hathaway Lee narrating.

Pie is homeless, without any money, and not sure where to go after leaving Philadelphia.  As she puzzles over her options, she finds a want ad for a caretaker of an old Sanctuary.  A position is exactly what she needs to hold her over for a time.  An opportunity to get a little money and a roof over her head.  What a surprise when Pie finds a sexy, Adonis looking out the window.  She also finds that she stepped into a two-thousand-year-old curse from the ancient gods. 

 I’m not a big reader of fantasy or paranormal, but I am a big fan of JA Huss regardless of the pseudonym she uses.  She is a master world builder that pulls me into her stories every time Damaged Gods thoroughly entertained me with the magical journey that Pie travels.   The world, the characters, and the mystery are all well done.

 Pie is a strong character who isn’t afraid to take on the unknown.  She stands up to the monster Pell when most are afraid.  Pell is used to people following his commands.  He is a misunderstood monster.  He misses his life and friends from before the curse.  He needs Pie to read the books of curses and find the right combination that lifts him out of this misery.

 The author combines good writing with a good story that is a little bit Beauty and the Beast, a little mythology mixed with Americana, a little enemies to lovers’ romance, and a lot of magic thrown in for good measure.   What I found most interesting is the way the world and scenery become a faux character in the story.  The mystery of the curse and the how and why Pell is in this situation keeps the pages turning.  

 Damaged Gods doesn’t end on a cliffhanger per se, but there are questions and quests left hanging.  I’m looking forward to more Pie and Pell in the future. 

5 STARS